Diagonal Chess Diagonal Chess This page is written by the game's inventor, David Howe . Diagonal Chess David Howe invented in 1997 a diagonal chess variant. The idea to turn the board 45 degrees is not new: see e.g., Minotaur Chess . Diagonal chess can be played with a normal set of chess pieces and board. Below, you read the description of David Howe of his game. Description The board is set up as pictured below. Players should sit at opposing corners of the board, so that the board is situated diagonally between them. Forward movement is diagonal.

+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | |...| |.p.| r |.n.| n |.k.| 8 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |...| |...| |.p.| p |.q.| b | 7 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | |...| |...| |.p.| p |.b.| 6 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |.P.| |...| |...| |.p.| r | 5 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | R |.P.| |...| |...| |.p.| 4 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |.B.| P |.P.| |...| |...| | 3 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | B |.Q.| P |.P.| |...| |...| 2

 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |.K.| N |.N.| R |.P.| |...| | 1 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - a b c d e f g h - Initial board layout (text) (visualize it tilted 45 degrees) Initial board layout (graphical) The rules of normal chess apply unless otherwise noted.

Pawns move forward diagonally, and capture horizontally and vertically (see diagram below). Pawns do not have an initial two square move. Castling is not allowed. Knights move as in normal chess, except diagonally (see diagram below). Pawn promotion. A white pawn that reaches a8, g8, h7 or h1 may promote to a Queen (or less). A white pawn that reaches b8, f8, h6 or h2 may promote to a Rook (or less). A white pawn that reaches c8, e8, h5 or h3 may promote to a Bishop or Knight. A white pawn that reaches d8 or h4 may only promote to a Knight. If a white pawn reaches h8 (on a legal move) then white wins the game. Similar rules apply for black. See the following diagram. Note, a player may still win by checkmating.

Q R B N B R Q * - +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | |...| $ |...| |...| |.k.| 8 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |...| |...| |...| N |...| | Q 7 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | |...| $ |...| |...| |...| R 6 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |...| |...| |...| |...| | B 5 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - | |...| |...| $ |...| $ |...| N 4 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |...| |...| x |.*.| |...| | B 3 +---+---+---+-|-/---+---+---+---+ - | |...| |.P-- x |...| |...| R 2 +

---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - |.K.| |...| |...| |...| | Q 1 +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ - a b c d e f g h - The white pawn on d2 may capture on d3 or e2, or may move to e3.

The white knight on f7 may move to any of the $ squares. Promotion squares for white are indicated on edge of board. Pawn and Knight moves / Promotion squares Notes A design limitation of this game was to be able to use a normal chess baord and pieces, with no extra equipment. A Knight is limited to moving to either light or dark squares. This decreases the value of the Knight. Both Knight promotion squares are the same color. Not a big problem, but aesthetically unpleasing. Only seven pawns used. Would be nice to find a use for the eighth pawn. Written by David Howe. WWW page created: April 24, 1997. ﻿ "Buy It Now" Sales: This site is supported by advertising and by donations. You can help out by making a small donation or by using this site's affiliate links when you shop at ebay.com , Amazon.com , or the House of Staunton . Chess Strategy: The Bishop Chess Piece Best Moves The Bishop Chess Piece Best Moves The initial placement of the Bishop is between the Knight and the King on one side and between the Knight and the Queen on the other side of the board.

Be aware of the location of all the other pieces because this majestic chess piece has limited movements and can be taken out of the game easily. The Bishop chess piece moves only diagonally as far as the end of the board or as far another chess piece. He has access to only half the squares of the board because of his diagonal moves. This means he has control over half the squares that the queen has which means he has only half the power of the Queen. The Bishop is more powerful in endgame positions due to increased open lines and less pieces for the Bishop to maneuver around. Keep him hidden until the last moves of the chess game. He can be a very powerful influence at that time. Using two Bishops together can be a great team. Unfortunately, the Bishop can lose a move while a Knight never can. Used as an advanced tactic, it is advantageous for the Bishop to avoid this tactic or use it to his advantage. Losing a move means using one unnecessary extra move which would prove to give the opponent an edge to win. The Bishop can, along with the other long range pieces, pin or skewer (thrust) an opposing chess piece while a Knight never can.

This advanced move is an attack against a major piece when that piece is in front of a lesser piece and the major piece has to move to prevent his capture. The lesser piece is captured instead. The Bishops ability to attack is limited. At times he is inferior to the Knight because of the ability of the Knight to leap over other pieces. Opponent pieces can determine where a Bishop will go whereas a Knight is not hindered by other pieces as much. The advantage for the Bishop not being able to leap is that the Bishop is not put in precarious positions. In order to jump a piece the Knight has to be right next to that piece. There is a chance of capture. Using the Bishop in advanced moves is difficult, but easily practiced. The more experienced chess player knows how to use the Bishop very effectively. The Bishop can be a strong defense because of its diagonal moves to defend his king in castling by making a more fortified area that the King can hide in. The Bishops and Pawns can work together. Set up a Bishop and his Pawns so that they can hold the enemy Pawns for your Bishop to attack. If your Bishop is on the white squares, put your Pawns on the black squares where the Bishop cannot go.

Then let the Bishops Pawns hold the enemy Pawns. Pawns cannot go back so they can be held easily. This is called fixing enemy pawns. Do not underestimate the power of the Bishop as it has the ability to change the fate of the game. Using the Bishop is a great strategy when you understand it. Since this is something experienced chess players use, beginners need to be aware of this strategic piece early in their games. Your Move Chess & Games: A Quick Summary of the Rules of Chess A Quick Summary of the Rules of Chess (How do I use this chess set, anyway?) So you now have your chess set and you're ready to go. One Problem: You don't know the rules yet! Never fear, we have included the basics of the gameplay below. No Purchase Necessary, of course. Now you'll know what to do with those chess serts that have been collecting dust in the closet. The Rules of Chess Chess is one of the oldest and most popular board games in the world. Most Believe the origins of chess begin in either India or Asia many thousands of years ago.

While chess sets have sometimes become fanciful pieces of artwork and decoration bringing elegance to most any home, chess endures first and foremost as a classic game of skill and strategy, with nearly limitless combinations and possibilities. Chess is surprisingly easy to learn, yet can take a lifetime of hard work to master! Part 1: The Chess Pieces The King The King is the most important chess piece on the chessboard. If he is checkmated (see objectives, below) the game is over! The King can move one space in any direction (see the diagram). He can never move in to "check" (where he is threatened by another piece). This means the king can never be in the space adjacent to the opposing King. The king can also castle. "Castling" is described in the special moves section below. The Queen The Queen is often considered the most powerful chess piece on the chessboard. She is placed next to the king, on her own color. The game is not over when she is lost, but if your opponent has a Queen and you do not, you may find yourself at a considerable disadvantage! Like the King, the Queen can move in any direction.

However, she is not limited to just one space - she can move any number of spaces in any direction, as long as she is not obstructed by another chess piece (see the diagram) Of course, if that obstruction is an opposing chess piece, she is free to capture it! The Bishop There are two Bishops for each player on the chessboard, situated next to Queen and the King, respectively. These chess pieces move along the diagonals of the chessboard. You can see that this means that the Bishop is bound to the color square it starts on. One Bishop starts on a white square, and one starts on a black square. They can move any number of spaces on the diagonals as long as they are not obstructed by another chess piece(see the diagram). Of course, if that obstruction is an opposing chess piece, they are free to capture it! The Knight There are two Knights for each player on the chessboard, situated between the Bishop and the Rook. These chess pieces have the unique trait of being able to 'leap' over other chess pieces. They move in an "L" shape (see the diagram). If they land on an opposing chess piece, it is captured.

The Rook (sometimes known as The Castle) There are two Rooks for each player on the chessboard, situated on the corners, next to the Knight. These chess pieces move up and down the rank and file of the chessboard, and can move any number of spaces as long as they are not obstructed by another chess piece (see the diagram). If the obstructing chess piece belong to their opponent, they are free to capture it. The Pawn Each player has eight Pawns, providing the first line of defense for their King. The Pawn has several unique attributes. In their first move, each pawn has the option to move forward one space or two spaces. After this move, they can only move one space forward. However, they are also the only chess piece that captures in a method different from how they move. To capture, the Pawn moves diagonally one space (see the diagram). The Pawn can never move backwards. The Pawn also has a special move called "En Passant", which you can read about in special moves section below. If the Pawn reaches the opposite side of the chessboard, it has the unique ability to promote to another chess piece. The pawn can become a Queen, Bishop, Rook, or Knight.

There are no restrictions to how many pieces of a given type you can have via promotion. Part 2: The Chess Board and how to set up your Chess Set A chessboard consists of 64 squares in a checkerboard pattern. There are light colored squares (referred to as white) and dark colored squares (referred to as black). There are 8 rows and columns, referred to as the "rank" and "file", respectively. The bottom right corner should be a white square. Setting up chess sets is fairly straightforward. The chess pieces are set up in an identical manner for both players. The Rooks are at the corners, the Knights are next, and then the Bishops. the middle two pieces are the King and the Queen. Remember, the Queen goes on her color. The entire second rank for each player is occupied by their Pawns. Part 3: The Objective of Chess The objective in chess is to checkmate your opponents King, and there are three potential ways the game can end: First, you can checkmate your opponent. This means that the King is in check (under potential attack from an opposing chess piece) and the player can not make any legal move to remove the King from check.

At this point, the game is over and the checkmated player loses. The amount of material on the chessboard is of no concern. Second, you and your opponent can reach a stalemate - the opponents King is not currently in check, but would be force to move in to check with their next move. Because you can never put your own King in check, you would have no legal moves to make. A stalemate does not mean the attacking player has won. Instead, it is a draw - neither player is victorious. In timed games, each player has a specific amount of time to make their moves. Once their time runs out, they lose, regardless of the material on the board. That means that you could have only your King legt and deftly avoid mate attempts from an opponent with most of their chess pieces still on the chess board and still win the game if your opponent were to run out of time. Part 4: Special Moves Castling Castling is a special move in chess that involves the King and the Rook. This is the only situation in which you would move two of your own chess pieces in the same move. The King and the Rook move towards each other and swap places.

To do this, move your King not one, but two spaces towards the Rook you are castling with. Then place the Rook on the opposite side of the King (shown in the diagram to the right). This can be done on either the King side or Queen side, however there are several prerequisites: The king and rook may not have moved, there must not be any obstructing pieces between them, and the King must not move through check in order to complete the move. En Passant This special move involves the Pawn. As mentioned earlier, this chess piece has the unique ability to move two spaces for its first move on the chessboard. Some may use this as an opportunity to avoid capture from an approaching pawn by passing the opposing chess piece with that double move. If this is done, the other player may make an "en passant", or "in passing" capture. Although the pawn has passed the capture square of the opposing side, that player can move his or her chess piece diagonally, as it does in capture, to the square that the other player had skipped. The pawn that made the double move has been considered captured in passing, and is removed from the chessboard.

Know The Chess Pieces - Beginners Chess Guide Collective Terms - Minor Pieces - The Knights and Bishops are categorized as "Minor Pieces", to reflect their worth on the Board, in relation to all the other pieces ... NOTE: Pawns, while being Chess Pieces, in form, aren't considered as either Major- or Minor Pieces ... Like your common foot-soldier, which they represent, Pawns can be likened to the man on the street - they do the fighting; they're more-expendable, in battle. But, they're NOT members of the so-called elite classes, such as the Nobles (Knights); high-ranking members of the Church (Bishops), or the Royals (Queen & King). To avoid confusion, when referring to Chess Pieces, we're talking about Knights, Bishops, Kings, or Queens ... But NOT the Pawns ... They're just "Pawns". So, you have Pieces and you have Pawns. Now, let's have a look at the two Minor Pieces ... Knights Can Jump Obstacles At the beginning of a game of Chess, besides the Pawns, the Knights are the ONLY OTHER Chess Pieces that can be the first to move.

Besides its unique L-shape pattern of movement, what makes the Knight valuable - in its Minor way - is its ability to jump over obstacles ... Depending on your perspective, a Knight, when properly used, can be a highly effective attacking unit - OR, a piece that can cause you problems, if you're the side under attack! Bishops Can Patrol Long Distances While the Bishop takes a move longer, to get into active duty; once its Diagonal path is cleared, this Minor Piece can remain at one end of the Board and cover, if available, squares right into the enemy's camp. Knights (In Summary) As already mentioned, with its ability to jump over obstacles can be a great asset. In the above animated graphic, White's Bishop remains restricted to a relatively-short, diagonal path and, really, cannot capture that Black Pawn target (red square), as it's protected by the Black Pawn, diagonally behind. White's Knight, on the other hand, can be much more pro-active ... Making good use of its unique ability; it can jump up and left, to capture Black's undefended Pawn.

However, in this mocked-up example, by doing so, Black's Knight, above it (in the graphic), will also be able to jump over the White Knight's new position, to capture White's Pawn. In such a tightly packed center, the Knight is useful as it can help to kick open these restrictive situations. Bishops (In Summary) The Bishops come into their own when there's LOTS of space on the Board, for their long-range attacking abilities to make a decisive impact. In the above animated graphic, White's Bishops Pair have guard of those two long diagonals ... Neither of Black's Knights, or the Black King can get safely across to those two White Pawns, which can make it safely to Black's back row and, by the magic of Pawn Promotion , one - or BOTH - will be changed into a Queen, to, more-or-less, make certain of victory. Collective Terms - Major Pieces - The Rooks and Queen are your "Major Pieces", due to the "Major amount of damage" they can inflict upon the enemy - or, on the flip-side, to YOUR own army!

Rook's Long-Range Power Although the Bishop, like the Rook, can attack from long-distance; the reason it's a Minor Piece is because it CANNOT trap a King on its back Rank (row). In the above animated image, White's King CANNOT get to its Pawns, because Black's advanced Rook covers all the squares of the 2nd Rank. That's one of the true powers of the Rook - to hold a King at bay, just long enough to bring in reinforcements ... From there, you may either be able to capture more Material; or, bring about victory, by "Checkmate". In contrast, while dangerously exposed to the threat of the White Queen, Black's own King can, at least, step onto the White square and closer to its Pawns. A Bishop would have the same trouble as the Queen. But, because it's restricted to its single-colored, diagonal paths, the Bishop is less effective ... As you'll see, next - even if the Queen's diagonal attack is foiled, she can still find targets along the straights ...

The Queen's Total Power The Queen's classification, as a Major Piece, is due to her combined, long-range diagonal reach of the Bishop AND the long-range reach, along the straights, that the Rooks enjoy. In one move, the Queen can simultaneously attack multiple pieces of the enemy or nip back to defend her own side. As the above animated graphic shows, White's Queen steps just one square forward and, not only puts Black's King in " Check ", but attacks BOTH of Black's Rooks, who made the mistake of sharing the Queen's diagonal paths. Chess Pieces Moves - Learn About Chess Piece Moves Learn About Chess Piece Moves Learn the different chess piece moves so that you know how to move the pieces around a chess board. Here is a tutorial on chess piece moves. Show transcript Hide transcript Transcript: Learn About Chess Piece Moves Hi, my name is Zachery Powell -- I'm with About.com. Today I'm going to teach you how chess pieces move. Set Up Your Chess Board to Learn Chess Piece Moves You need a board and 16 pieces on one side and 16 on the other side, with one side being light and one side being dark. The right hand corner of each player should be the light color.

The first thing you want to do is set up your king and queen. They go on the center in the back row. The queen will be on her color and the king will be on the opposite color. On the other side of the king and queen you have your two bishops and on the either side of your bishops you have your two knights. On the outside would be your two rooks, and all your pawns would take up your front row. The King and Queen's Chess Piece Moves The king is the most important piece; it is also the tallest piece. The king has very limited movements. He can only move one space in any direction forward, backwards or diagonal. The king can capture any piece as long as it's in its moving range. The king can never move to a space that would allow him to be captured. The queen is the most powerful chess piece, and can move in any direction for any distance without jumping over any chess pieces. Learn the Chess Piece Moves for Bishops, Knights and Rooks There are two bishops, one on each color. The bishops can move diagonal for any distance without jumping over a piece. The knight is a very interesting piece.

It can move forward and back, left or right two spaces and then left or right one space. It is the only one that can jump over other chess pieces. The rook, sometimes called the castle, can move forward, backwards, left and right, any distance without jumping over another piece. The Pawn's Chess Piece Moves Your pawn is the most basic piece; it can only move one space forward unless it's the pawn's opening move -- then it can move two spaces forward. Your pawn cannot move backwards, or cannot move side to side. It can move diagonal and can only move diagonal to take an opponent's piece. The pawn cannot take your opponent's piece while using the forward movement. Check is when the king can be taken in the next move. When you are checked, you must either move the king out of danger or use another piece to block or take the threatening piece. When your king can no longer move out of danger, then you are now in checkmate. That's the end of the game. Thank you very much for watching. For more information, visit us at About.com. About videos are made available on an "as is" basis, subject to the Terms of Use .

Chess: Pieces - Chess.com Chess.com Apr 15, 2010, 3:19 PM 3,825 Reads 4 Comments I'm creating this for a couple of my friends and others that are new to chess. This is just to cover the basics of each piece. As well, with facts on each of the pieces there will be a video that explains it visually. 1. Pawns The pawn is the most numerous and (in most circumstances) the weakest piece in the game of chess, representing infantry, or more particularly armed peasants or pikemen. Each player begins the game with eight pawns, one on each square of the second rank from the view of the player. Movement: Pawns are unusual in movement and use. Unlike all the other pieces, pawns may not move backwards. Normally a pawn moves by advancing a single square, but the first time each pawn is moved from its initial position, it has the option to advance two squares. Pawns may not use the initial two-square advance to jump over an occupied square, or to capture. Any piece directly in front of a pawn, friend or foe, blocks its advance.

Capturing: Unlike other pieces, the pawn does not capture in the same way as it moves. A pawn captures diagonally, one square forward and to the left or right. Promotion: A pawn that advances all the way to the opposite side of the board (the opposing player's first rank) is promoted to another piece of that player's choice of a queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same color. The pawn is immediately (before the opposing player's next move) replaced by the new piece. The choice of promotion is not limited to captured pieces. It is both legal and possible for one player to simultaneously have as many as ten knights, ten bishops, ten rooks or nine queens. Strategy: The pawn structure(or the way a player sets up his/her pawns) mostly determines the strategic flavor of a game. While other pieces can usually be regrouped more favorably if they are temporarily badly placed, a poorly placed pawn cannot retreat to a more favorable position. Because pawns capture diagonally and can be blocked from moving straight forward, opposing pawns often become locked in diagonal pawn chains of two or more pawns of each color, where each player controls squares of one color.

Isolated Pawn: Pawns on adjacent files can support each other in attack and defense. A pawn which has no friendly pawns in adjacent files is an isolated pawn. The square in front of an isolated pawn may become an enduring weakness. Passed Pawn: A pawn which cannot be blocked or captured by enemy pawns in its advance to promotion is a passed pawn. Double Pawn: After a capture with a pawn, a player may end up with two pawns on the same file, called doubled pawns. Doubled pawns are substantially weaker than pawns which are side by side, because they cannot defend each other, and the front pawn blocks the advance of the back one. 2. Knight The knight is a piece in the game of chess, representing a knight (armoured cavalry). It is normally represented by a horse's head, leading some to refer to it informally as a "horse". Each player starts with two knights, which start on the rank closest to the player. Movement/Capturing: The knight move is unusual among chess pieces. When it moves, it can move two squares horizontally and one square vertically, or two squares vertically and one square horizontally. The complete move therefore looks like the letter 'L'.

Unlike all other standard chess pieces, the knight can 'jump over' all other pawns and pieces (of either color) to its destination square. It captures an enemy piece by moving into its square. The knight's ability to 'jump over' other pieces means it is at its most powerful in closed positions. The move is one of the longest-surviving moves in chess, having remained unchanged since before the seventh century AD. Because of this it also appears in most chess-related national games. The knight moves alternately to white and black squares. Strategy: The knight is the only piece that can be in position to attack a king, queen, bishop, or rook without being reciprocally attacked by that piece. The knight is thus especially well-suited for executing a fork (a tactic that uses one piece to attack two or more of the opponent's pieces at the same time). 3. Bishop A bishop is a piece in the board game of chess. Each player begins the game with two bishops. One starts between the king's knight and the king, the other between the queen's knight and the queen. Movement/Capturing:The bishop has no restrictions in distance for each move, but is limited to diagonal movement.

Bishops, like all other pieces except the Knight, cannot jump over other pieces. A bishop captures by occupying the square on which an enemy piece sits. The bishops may be differentiated according to which wing they begin on, i.e. the king's bishop and queen's bishop. As a consequence of its diagonal movement, each bishop always remains on either the white or black squares, and so it is also common to refer to them as light-squared or dark-squared bishops. Good and Bad Bishop: A player with only one bishop should generally place his pawns on squares of the color that the bishop cannot move to. This allows the player to control squares of both colors, allows the bishop to move freely among the pawns, and helps fix enemy pawns on squares on which they can be attacked by the bishop. Such a bishop is often referred to as a "good" bishop. Conversely, a bishop which is impeded by friendly pawns is often referred to as a "bad bishop" (or sometimes, disparagingly, a "tall pawn"). However, a "bad" bishop need not always be a weakness, especially if it is outside its own pawn chains.

Fianchetto: A bishop may be fianchettoed, for example after moving the g2 pawn to g3 and the bishop on f1 to g2. This can form a strong defense for the castled king on g1 and the bishop can often exert strong pressure on the long diagonal. A fianchettoed bishop should generally not be given up lightly, since the resulting holes in the pawn formation may prove to be serious weaknesses, particularly if the king has castled on that side of the board. 4. Rook A rook is a piece in the strategy board game of chess. The piece has been called the castle, tower, marquess, rector, and comes, and is still sometimes popularly (but not under official chess terminology) called a "castle". Using the rook in a specialized double-movement with the king is still referred to as castling. Each player starts with two rooks, one in each of the corners nearest his own side. Movement/Capturing: The rook moves horizontally or vertically, forward or back, through any number of unoccupied squares. Like other pieces, it captures by occupying the square on which an enemy piece stands.

The rook also participates, along with the king, in a special move called castling. Strategy: In the opening, the rooks are undefended by other pieces, so it is usually desirable to connect one's rooks on the first rank by castling and clearing all pieces except the king and rooks from the first rank. In that position, the rooks protect each other, and can easily move to threaten the most favorable files. A common goal with a rook is to place it on the first rank of an open file, i.e. one unobstructed by pawns of either player, or a half-open file, i.e. one unobstructed by friendly pawns. From this position, the rook is relatively unexposed to risk but can control every square on the file. If one file is particularly important, a player may advance one rook on it, and move the other behind, doubling the rooks. A rook on the seventh rank (the opponent's second rank) is usually very powerful, as it threatens the opponent's unadvanced pawns and puts pressure in the enemy king. A rook on the seventh rank is sufficient compensation for a pawn.

In this position, the rook on the seventh rank enables White to draw, despite being a pawn down. Two rooks on the seventh rank are often enough to force victory, or at least a draw by perpetual check. These rooks are sometimes colloquially referred to as "pigs on the seventh", because they often threaten to "eat" the opponent's pieces or pawns. Rooks are most powerful towards the end of a game (i.e. the endgame), where they can move unobstructed by pawns and control large numbers of squares. They are somewhat clumsy at restraining enemy pawns from advancing towards promotion, unless they can occupy the file behind the advancing pawn. By the same token, a rook best supports a friendly pawn towards promotion from behind it in the same file. 5. Queen The queen is the most powerful piece in the game of chess and can move in any direction. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of their first rank next to their king. The white queen starts on a white square, and the black queen on a black square, thus the mnemonic "queen gets her color" or "queen on color".

Moving/Capturing: The reason the queen is more powerful than a combination of a rook and bishop, even though they control the same number of squares, is twofold. First, the queen is a more mobile unit than the rook and bishop, as the entire power of the queen can be transferred to another location in one move while transferring the entire firepower of a rook and bishop requires two moves. Second, the queen is not hampered by the bishop's inability to control squares of the opposite color to the square on which it stands on. A factor in favor of the rook and bishop is that they can attack (or defend) a square twice, while a queen can only do so once, but experience has shown that this factor is usually less significant than the points which favor the queen. The queen is at her most powerful when the board is open, when the enemy king is not well-defended, or when there are loose (i.e. undefended) pieces in the enemy camp. Because of her long range and ability to move in more than one direction, the queen is well-equipped to execute forks. Compared to other long range pieces (i.e.

rooks and bishops) the queen is less restricted and more powerful also in closed positions. Strategy: Beginners often develop the queen as soon as possible, in the hopes of plundering the enemy position and possibly even delivering an early checkmateScholar's mate. This strategy is disadvantageous against experienced players. With no other pieces developed, an attack by the queen alone can be easily repelled. Moreover, because the queen is too valuable to exchange for a lesser piece, the defender can often gain time and space by threatening an exposed queen and forcing her to retreat. Nonetheless, the Scandinavian Defense, which in the main line features queen moves by Black on the second and third moves, is considered sound and has been played at world championship level. Even the Parham Attack (1.e4 e5 2.Qh5!?), which is widely considered a chess opening suitable only for beginners. 6. King In chess, the King is the most important piece. The object of the game is to trap the opponent's king so that its capture is unavoidable (checkmate). If a player's king is threatened with capture, it is said to be in check, and the player must move so as to remove the threat of capture.

If it cannot escape capture on the next move, the king is said to be in checkmate, and the player which owns that king loses the game. Although it is the most important piece, it is one of the weakest pieces in the game (until the endgame). Movement/Capturing: White starts with the king on the first rank to the right of the queen. Black starts with the king directly across from the white king. With the squares labeled as in algebraic notation, the white king starts on e1 and the black king on e8. A king can move one empty or enemy-occupied square in any direction (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally) unless such a move would place the king in check. As a result, the opposing kings may never occupy adjacent squares, but the king can give discovered check by unmasking a bishop, rook, or queen. The king is also involved in the special move of castling. As with all pieces except the pawn, it captures by moving onto a square occupied by an enemy piece.

Castling: In conjunction with a rook, the king may make a special move called castling, in which the king moves two squares toward one of its rooks and then the rook is placed on the other side of the king. Castling consists of moving the king two squares on its first rank toward either one of the original rooks, then moving the rook onto the square over which the king crossed. Castling is allowed only when neither the king nor the castling rook has previously moved, when no squares between them are occupied, when the king is not in check, and when the king will not move across or end its movement on a square that is under enemy control. Check/Checkmate: If a player's move places the opponent's king under attack, that king is said to be in check, and the player in check is required to immediately remedy the situation. There are three possible methods to remove the king from check: Moving the king to an adjacent non-threatened square Interposing a piece between the king in check and the attacking piece in order to break the line of threat (not possible when the attacking piece is a knight, or when in double check).

Capturing the attacking piece (not possible in double check, unless the king captures) If none of these three options are possible, the player's king has been checkmated and the player loses the game. Stalemate: A stalemate occurs when, for the player with the move: The player has no legal moves, and The player's king is not in check If this happens, the king is said to have been stalemated and the game ends in a draw. A player who has very little or no chance of winning will often try to entice the opponent to inadvertently place the player's king in stalemate in order to avoid a loss. Hope this has helped all that who read this wanting to know about chess. The credit to the one that made these videos is by thechesswebsite, which more of his videos going over gambits, traps, openings, etc. can be found on his YouTube channel: Ruthless Bishop Moves in Chess Archives Ruthless Bishop Moves in Chess Third to the queen and second to the rook in strategy value, bishops in chess operate ruthlessly. They often seem to come out from nowhere and suddenly attack with devastating effects. Here are some deadly features of this chess piece.

Though limited to two basic moves�diagonal left or right�bishops mostly figure in unrelenting assaults against the king or queen. They can either provide the main back up support or execute the final kill themselves. They can travel long distances�from edge to edge or corner to corner. Often, bishops can hide somewhere in the distance, crowded by several pieces from view. Then, when the right opportunity and opening comes�when their path is cleared of blockades�bishops can swiftly glide across the board and mercilessly take an unsuspecting enemy official. Each player is provided two bishops initially. The king and queen have their own bishops each. One bishop rules the diagonal black squares, the other the white squares. They can never share square colors, though. They can go back and forth the long or short diagonal distances, crisscross on the board several times, and abruptly enter and leave enemy territory. When playing the bishops, we should be wary against enemy queen, rooks, and knights which have powers to counter bishops. But they are also never safe from bishop attacks. Enemy king and pawns are no match against them.

Bishops work well with our queen when checkmating the enemy king and queen, and with our knights in taking other enemy pieces. However, a bishop works poorly with a knight or a rook when planning on assaulting the enemy king, especially at near end of the game when the opponent has only the king and we're confined to 12 last moves. In this situation, it's better to have a bishop working with the queen. Worst scenario is when we have only the king and a bishop to check a lone enemy king with. Hence, it's best to have 2 knights or 2 rooks or the queen working with our bishops in chess. It's a good play to have one bishop joining our assault team in enemy territory and the other just kept from a distance, like a sniper, and waiting for the right opportunity to move in or give support. Bishops in chess are among versatile pieces that can do lots of useful work to strategize a win. They can help queens and other pieces rule diagonal territories in the game.

Posted in: | Posted by: | Comments: | Date: How to Play Chess: Rules and Basics - Chess.com Chess.com Forums Learn to Play Chess It's never too late to learn how to play chess - the most popular game in the world! If you are totally new to the game or even want to learn all of the rules and strategies, read on! Getting Better at Chess History of Chess The origins of chess are not exactly clear, though most believe it evolved from earlier chess-like games played in India almost two thousand years ago.The game of chess we know today has been around since the 15th century where it became popular in Europe. The Goal of Chess Chess is a game played between two opponents on opposite sides of a board containing 64 squares of alternating colors. Each player has 16 pieces: 1 king, 1 queen, 2 rooks, 2 bishops, 2 knights, and 8 pawns. The goal of the game is to checkmate the other king. Checkmate happens when the king is in a position to be captured (in check) and cannot escape from capture.

Starting a Game At the beginning of the game the chessboard is laid out so that each player has the white (or light) color square in the bottom right-hand side. The chess pieces are then arranged the same way each time. The second row (or rank) is filled with pawns. The rooks go in the corners, then the knights next to them, followed by the bishops, and finally the queen, who always goes on her own matching color (white queen on white, black queen on black), and the king on the remaining square. The player with the white pieces always moves first. Therefore, players generally decide who will get to be white by chance or luck such as flipping a coin or having one player guess the color of the hidden pawn in the other player's hand. White then makes a move, followed by black, then white again, then black and so on until the end of the game. How the Pieces Move Each of the 6 different kinds of pieces moves differently. Pieces cannot move through other pieces (though the knight can jump over other pieces), and can never move onto a square with one of their own pieces. However, they can be moved to take the place of an opponent's piece which is then captured.

Pieces are generally moved into positions where they can capture other pieces (by landing on their square and then replacing them), defend their own pieces in case of capture, or control important squares in the game. The King The king is the most important piece, but is one of the weakest. The king can only move one square in any direction - up, down, to the sides, and diagonally. Click on the '>' button in the diagram below to see how the king can move around the board. The king may never move himself into check (where he could be captured). The Queen The queen is the most powerful piece. She can move in any one straight direction - forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally - as far as possible as long as she does not move through any of her own pieces. And, like with all pieces, if the queen captures an opponent's piece her move is over. Click through the diagram below to see how the queens move. Notice how the white queen captures the black queen and then the black king is forced to move. The Rook The rook may move as far as it wants, but only forward, backward, and to the sides. The rooks are particularly powerful pieces when they are protecting each other and working together!

The Bishop The bishop may move as far as it wants, but only diagonally. Each bishop starts on one color (light or dark) and must always stay on that color. Bishops work well together because they cover up each other’s weaknesses. The Knight Knights move in a very different way from the other pieces – going two squares in one direction, and then one more move at a 90 degree angle, just like the shape of an “L”. Knights are also the only pieces that can move over other pieces. The Pawn Pawns are unusual because they move and capture in different ways: they move forward, but capture diagonally. Pawns can only move forward one square at a time, except for their very first move where they can move forward two squares. Pawns can only capture one square diagonally in front of them. They can never move or capture backwards. If there is another piece directly in front of a pawn he cannot move past or capture that piece. Promotion Pawns have another special ability and that is that if a pawn reaches the other side of the board it can become any other chess piece (called promotion). A pawn may be promoted to any piece.

[NOTE: A common misconception is that pawns may only be exchanged for a piece that has been captured. That is NOT true.] A pawn is usually promoted to a queen. Only pawns may be promoted. En Passant The last rule about pawns is called “en passant,” which is French for “in passing”. If a pawn moves out two squares on its first move, and by doing so lands to the side of an opponent’s pawn (effectively jumping past the other pawn’s ability to capture it), that other pawn has the option of capturing the first pawn as it passes by. This special move must be done immediately after the first pawn has moved past, otherwise the option to capture it is no longer available. Click through the example below to better understand this odd, but important rule. Castling One other special rule is called castling. This move allows you to do two important things all in one move: get your king to safety (hopefully), and get your rook out of the corner and into the game. On a player’s turn he may move his king two squares over to one side and then move the rook from that side’s corner to right next to the king on the opposite side.

(See the example below.) However, in order to castle, the following conditions must be met: it must be that king’s very first move it must be that rook’s very first move there cannot be any pieces between the king and rook to move the king may not be in check or pass through check Notice that when you castle one direction the king is closer to the side of the board. That is called castling kingside. Castling to the other side, through where the queen sat, is called castling queenside. Regardless of which side, the king always moves only two squares when castling. Check & Checkmate As stated before, the purpose of the game is to checkmate the opponent’s king. This happens when the king is put into check and cannot get out of check. There are only three ways a king can get out of check: move out of the way (though he cannot castle!), block the check with another piece, or capture the piece threatening the king. If a king cannot escape checkmate then the game is over. Customarily the king is not captured or removed from the board, the game is simply declared over. Draws Occasionally chess games do not end with a winner, but with a draw.

There are 5 reasons why a chess game may end in a draw: The position reaches a stalemate where it is one player’s turn to move, but his king is NOT in check and yet he does not have another legal move The players may simply agree to a draw and stop playing There are not enough pieces on the board to force a checkmate (example: a king and a bishop vs.a king) A player declares a draw if the same exact position is repeated three times (though not necessarily three times in a row) Fifty consecutive moves have been played where neither player has moved a pawn or captured a piece Chess 960 Chess960 follows all the rules of standard chess, except for the starting position of pieces on the back rank, which are placed randomly in one of 960 possible positions. Castling is done just like in standard chess, with the King and Rook landing on their normal castled squares (g1 and f1, or c1 and d1). 960 plays just like standard chess, but with more variety in the opening. Some Tournament Rules Many tournaments follow a set of common, similar rules.

These rules do not necessarily apply to play at home or online Touch-move If a player touches one of their own pieces they must move that piece as long as it is a legal move. If a player touches an opponent’s piece, they must capture that piece. A player who wishes to touch a piece only to adjust it on the board must first announce the intention, usually by saying “adjust”. Introduction to Clocks and Timers Most tournaments use timers to regulate the time spent on each game, not on each move. Each player gets the same amount of time to use for their entire game and can decide how to spend that time. Once a player makes a move they then touch a button or hit a lever to start the opponent’s clock. If a player runs out of time and the opponent calls the time, then the player who ran out of time loses the game (unless the opponent does not have enough pieces to checkmate, in which case it is a draw). Basic Strategy There are four simple things that every chess player should know: #1 Protect your king Get your king to the corner of the board where he is usually safer. Don’t put off castling. You should usually castle as quickly as possible.

Remember, it doesn’t matter how close you are to checkmating your opponent if your own king is checkmated first! #2 Don’t give pieces away Don’t carelessly lose your pieces! Each piece is valuable and you can’t win a game without pieces to checkmate. There is an easy system that most players use to keep track of the relative value of each chess piece: A pawn is worth 1 A knight is worth 3 A bishop is worth 3 A rook is worth 5 A queen is worth 9 The king is infinitely valuable At the end of the game these points don’t mean anything – it is simply a system you can use to make decisions while playing, helping you know when to capture, exchange, or make other moves. #3 Control the center You should try and control the center of the board with your pieces and pawns. If you control the center, you will have more room to move your pieces and will make it harder for your opponent to find good squares for his pieces. In the example above white makes good moves to control the center while black plays bad moves. #4 Use all of your pieces In the example above white got all of his pieces in the game!

Your pieces don’t do any good when they are sitting back on the first row. Try and develop all of your pieces so that you have more to use when you attack the king. Using one or two pieces to attack will not work against any decent opponent. Getting Better at Chess Knowing the rules and basic strategies is only the beginning - there is so much to learn in chess that you can never learn it all in a lifetime! To improve you need to do three things: #1 – Play Just keep playing! Play as much as possible. You should learn from each game – those you win and those you lose. #2 – Study If you really want to improve quickly then pick up a recommended chess book. There are many resources on Chess.com to help you study and improve. #3 - Have fun Don’t get discouraged if you don’t win all of your games right away. Everyone loses – even world champions. As long as you continue to have fun and learn from the games you lose then you can enjoy chess forever!

Question: In chess, what piece is limited only to diagonal moves?
Answer: Bishop